When Tomas Kaberle had the ‘A’ removed from his sweater, many observers interpreted that as a further indication he was not part of the Maple Leafs’ long-term plan.

Other hints about his tenuous future in Toronto came in the Leafs’ aborted attempts to trade the defenceman over the years. He could have gone to Philadelphia for Jeff Carter, Boston for Phil Kessel or anywhere last summer if a solid offer had materialized.

But, through all of that, Kaberle has remained fiercely — some might say blindly — loyal to the Leafs.

Not only does he still not want to go elsewhere, the 32-year-old said this weekend that he wants to sign here again when his current contract expires at season’s end.

He said his excellent play this young NHL season isn’t part of any exit strategy, an attempt to make himself more attractive to a Stanley Cup contender, as some have guessed.

Instead, the team Kaberle says he is really trying to impress is his current employer.

“I’m hoping (it will encourage the) Leafs to keep me here,” he said. “I have to play 100 per cent every game. Hopefully, I’ll stay healthy. I love it here. I’ve said it 1,000 times before. I want to be successful here.”

He has been terrific in Toronto’s first two games, topping the team in ice time the first game (23:55) and tying for the lead with Dion Phaneuf (23:39) in Saturday’s 5-1 thumping of Ottawa.

But what really stands out, especially after his late-season struggles last year, is that Kaberle is skating like a kid again. He is once more making impeccable passes and he has combined with Dion Phaneuf to give the Leafs two smart, complementary blueliners on a power play that appears ready to break out.

During 5-on-5 play, he has teamed with an impressive Luke Schenn as a pairing that can get the puck up ice quickly while performing solidly in their own end. They’re playing so well together, it would be difficult to say which defenceman is helping the other more.

“I’ve been having fun, that’s the key, in the pre-season and now,” said Kaberle of his renaissance. “It’s lot of fun inside the dressing room and outside the dressing room. We just want to keep the momentum and the positive feeling going our way.”

Kaberle said that other than a brief, earlier conversation, he has not met with Leafs’ general manager Brian Burke to discuss his desire to get a new contract in Toronto. He said the important focus now is on playing the games, trying to get the points they couldn’t while going 0-7-1 to start last season.

“I haven’t talked to Brian since the start of the season,” he said. “I don’t know what’s going to happen. I’m not worried about it right now. I’m just going to worry about the games coming up, especially the first month of the season. It always shows the way the team is going to play. We have to be at least .500 to have a chance to go into the playoffs when the real season starts.”

Burke said he and Kaberle’s agent, Rick Curran, agreed to let any discussion about the defenceman’s potential future with the Leafs to lay fallow for now.

“Rick Curran and I agreed that this could and would wait. No timeframe has been set,” said Burke in an email Sunday. “Kabba is off to a great start, no doubt.”

Obviously, if the Leafs are receptive to keeping the veteran, it will come down to money and what Kaberle is seeking. He’s been a bargain at $4.25 million per season and will clearly want a raise. What the Leafs might have to spend on him or how their blueline will be constituted five months from now is difficult to predict.

And, in the meantime, Kaberle would like to temper the speculation about his future. Though he said it is part of the job, he was clearly uncomfortable hearing his name churning in the rumour mill all summer, or at least up until his no-trade clause kicked back in on Aug. 15.

“It seems like all the talk was about me. August 15 was probably the best day in my summer,” he said. “I was really glad I stayed here.”

Burke has maintained he will not ask Kaberle to waive his no-trade clause and, in a recent conversation, he said he doesn’t feel he has to get anything back for the defenceman in a trade.

“I get $4.2 million (in cap space) back if he decides not to stay at the end of the year,” said Burke.

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